Cage having spike

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a cage which is inserted between vertebral bodies of a cervical vertebra or spine during an operation for treating a cervical disc disease, myelosis, or fracture of the cervical vertebra or spine, and more particularly, to a cage with spikes, including upper and lower spikes which are attached to a clip inserted into a main body of the cage, unfolded upward and downward from the main body, and locked to vertebral bodies of a cervical vertebra or spine positioned at the top and bottom of the cage such that the cage is fixed and locked between the vertebral bodies.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/460,536 filed Aug. 15, 2014, and issuing as U.S. Pat. No. 9,775,722on Oct. 3, 2017, which claims the benefit of Korean Patent ApplicationNo. 10-2013-108840, filed on Sep. 11, 2013, in the Korean IntellectualProperty Office, each of which is incorporated herein by reference inits entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a cage which is inserted betweenvertebral bodies of a cervical vertebra or spine during an operation fortreating a cervical disc disease, myelosis, or fracture of the cervicalvertebra or spine, and more particularly, to a cage including upper andlower spikes which are attached to a clip inserted into a main body ofthe cage, unfolded to protrude from the top and bottom of the main body,and locked to vertebral bodies of a cervical vertebra or spinepositioned at the top and bottom of the cage such that the cage is fixedbetween the vertebral bodies.

2. Description of Related Art

In general, an operation of inserting an artificial compensation-chaincage between vertebral bodies of a cervical vertebra or spine isperformed in order to treat a cervical disc disease, myelosis, orfracture of a cervical vertebra or spine in the orthopedics departmentor neurosurgery department. More specifically, an operator removes acervical disc of a diseased part so as to eliminate compression ofnerve, and inserts the artificial compensation-cage to recover andmaintain the interval of the part from which the cervical disc has beenremoved.

Such a cage is likely to be moved within the intervertebral space bystress applied when the patient moves. Thus, an additional unit must beprovided to prevent the pivot of the cage while preventing the movementof the cervical vertebra or spine within the intervertebral space.

According to Korean Patent Laid-open Publication No. 10-2011-33707 whichhas disclosed a cervical vertebral body fusion device, Korean Patent No.900991 which has disclosed a cage for spinal implant, and Korean PatentLaid-open Publication No. 10-2011-11049 which has disclosed a fusioncage between vertebral bodies, a cage is inserted into a part from whichan intervertebral disc has been removed, and a reinforcement platehaving a predetermined length is fixed to a cervical vertebra or spinethrough a screw, thereby preventing the displacement of the insertedcage.

In the above-described techniques, however, the reinforcement plate isfixed at the front of the cage through the screw. Thus, the head of thescrew inserted into the plate or a part of the plate may protrude morethan protruding parts of the cervical vertebra or spine, which arepositioned at the top and bottom of the part from which theintervertebral disk has been removed and in which the cage is installed.In this case, according to a force applied when a patient moves withtime, the cage may be moved or pivoted within the intervertebral spacesuch that the protruding head of the screw within the intervertebralspace comes in contact with blood tissues or nerve tissues passingthrough the cervical vertebra or spine. Thus, there is a demand for thedevelopment of a more stable cage.

Furthermore, the plate and the screw are used to fix the cage. In thiscase, it is extremely difficult to fix the plate through the screw insuch a small intervertebral space, while much attention is needed. Thus,special technical skills are required for an operator.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve theabove-mentioned problems involved in the prior art, and it is an objectof the present invention to provide a cage with spikes which is capableof preventing the occurrence of a protruding part of a screw so as tominimize interference with blood tissues or nerve tissues passingthrough the cervical vertebra or spine when the cage is placed, andperforming a procedure for fixing the cage in a relatively easy andsimple manner, thereby improving the stability of operation.

To accomplish the above object, the present invention provides a cagewith spikes which includes upper and lower spikes which are attached toa clip inserted into a main body of the cage, unfolded upward anddownward from the main body, and locked to vertebral bodies of acervical vertebra or spine positioned at the top and bottom of the cagesuch that the cage is fixed and locked between the vertebral bodies.

The cage in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention hasthe following effects.

First, the cage is locked and fixed between the vertebral bodies of acervical vertebra or spine at the part from which an intervertebral diskhas been removed, by the spikes unfolded upward and downward from themain body of the cage. Thus, it is possible to significantly reduce thepossibility that the screw for fixing the cage or a part of the platewill interfere with the nerve tissue or blood tissue passing through thecervical vertebra or spine at the part from which the intervertebraldisk was removed and in which the cage is installed. Furthermore,prognosis of a patient having received an intervertebral disk surgerymay be improved.

Furthermore, the cage in accordance with the embodiment of the presentdoes not employ a plate or screw unlike the conventional cages, butincludes the spikes. Thus, it is possible to omit a complicatedoperation of fixing a plate through a screw in a small intervertebralspace in the related art. Therefore, the convenience of the proceduremay be improved, and the operation process may be simplified to providethe stability of the operation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will be apparent from the following detailed description ofthe preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cage in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the cage in accordance with the embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A′ of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the cage in accordance withthe embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 5A to 5D are detailed diagrams of a main body of the cage inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 5C being across-sectional view taken along the line B-B′ of FIG. 5A.

FIGS. 6A to 6C are detailed diagrams of an upper spike of the cage inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 6C being across-sectional view taken along the line C-C′ of FIG. 6B;

FIGS. 7A to 7C are detailed diagrams of a lower spike of the cage inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 7C being across-sectional view taken along the line D-D′ of FIG. 5B;

FIGS. 8A to 8D are detailed diagrams of a clip of the cage in accordancewith the embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 8C being across-sectional view taken along the line E-E′ of FIG. B;

FIG. 9A is a perspective illustrating a state in which upper and lowerspikes of the cage, in accordance with the embodiment of the presentinvention, are coupled to the clip;

FIG. 9B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line F-F′ in FIG. A;

FIG. 10A is another perspective view illustrating a state in which theupper and lower spikes of the cage, in accordance with the embodiment ofthe present invention, are coupled to the clip, but shown in analternate position;

FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line G-G′ in FIG.10A;

FIGS. 11A to 11C are detailed diagrams of a guide block of the cage inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12A to 12D are diagrams illustrating the operation state of thecage in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention, FIG.12C being a cross-sectional view taken along the line H-H′ of FIG. 12B;

FIGS. 13A to 13D illustrate an insertion mechanism for inserting thecage in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the cage inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention is placed;

EXPLANATION ON SYMBOLS

1: cage 10: main body 101: top surface 02: side surface 103: frontsurface 104: bottom surface 105: rear surface 110: bone fusion hole101a,104 a : saw-toothed bodies 120: insertion hole 130: channel part140: inclined part 141; upper inclined surface 142; top plane surface143; lower inclined surface 144; bottom plane surface 145; inner wallsurfaces 146; protruding surface 151; mounting grooves 152; upper wall153; lower wall 154: side wall 20: upper spike 21: upper blade 22,23:arms 24,25: fastening holes 30: lower spike 31: lower blade 32, 33: arms34, 35: fastening holes 40: guide block 41: front plate 42: left bar 43:right bar 44: through-hole 45: entrance hole 46: insertion hole 50: clip51: right retaining jaw 52: left retaining jaw 53: right rib 54: leftrib 55: lower rib 56: through-hole 57: base 60: guide block coupling pin61: clip coupling pin 45 200: insertion mechanism 210: head 211: lefthead 212: right head 213: upper head 220: first lower support rod 221:push stick guide 230: second lower support rod 240: push stick 241: pushplate 242: rod body 243: boss 244: coupling member 250: upper supportrod 251: upper support rod guide 252: support body Dl: upper vertebralbody D2: lower vertebral body

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described belowin more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The presentinvention may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not beconstrued as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, theseembodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough andcomplete, and will fully convey the scope of the present invention tothose skilled in the art. Throughout the disclosure, like referencenumerals refer to like parts throughout the various figures andembodiments of the present invention.

The drawings are provided as examples for communicating the idea of thepresent invention to those skilled in the art. Thus, the presentinvention is not limited to the drawings, but may be embodied into otherforms.

Furthermore, as long as terms used in this specification are not defineddifferently, the terms have meanings which are typically understood bythose skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains.Moreover, detailed descriptions related to well-known functions orconfigurations will be ruled out in order not to unnecessarily obscuresubject matters of the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cage in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the cage inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is across-sectional view taken along line A-A′ of FIG. 2.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, the cage 1 in accordance with the embodimentof the present invention includes a main body 10, a clip 50, upper andlower spikes 20 and 30, and a guide block 40. The clip 50 is insertedinto the main body 10. The upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 are coupledto the clip 50 and unfolded to protrude upward and downward through theinsertion of the clip 50. The guide block 40 is coupled to the main body10 so as to guide the insertion of the clip 50.

The upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 unfolded upward and downward fromthe main body 10 are locked to upper and lower vertebral bodies of acervical vertebral or spine positioned at the top and bottom of the cage1 such that the cage 1 is fixed and locked between the vertebral bodiesof the cervical vertebral or spine.

The main body 10 of the cage 1 has a hexahedral shape including a topsurface 101, both side surfaces 102, a front surface 103, a bottomsurface 104, and a rear surface 105. The corners of the main body 10 arerounded.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the main body 10 has a bone fusion hole 110formed through the top and bottom surfaces 101 and 104 and a channelpart 130 formed therein. The channel part 130 corresponds to a spacehaving an opening through which the clip 50 is inserted into the mainbody 10 of the cage 1 from the front surface 103.

Furthermore, the main body 10 has an inclined part 140 formed therein.The inclined part 140 guides movement of the upper and lower spikes 20and 30, when the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 coupled to the clip 50inserted through the channel part 130 are unfolded upward and downward.The top of the inclined part 140 is opened so as to unfold the upper andlower spikes 20 and 30 to the outside of the main body 10. The inclinedpart 140 will be described in more detail.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the main body 10 has saw-toothed bodies 101aand 104 a formed on the top and bottom surfaces 101 and 104 thereof.When the cage 1 is inserted between vertebral bodies of a cervicalvertebral or spine, the saw-toothed bodies 10 a and 104 a improve thecontact between the upper and lower vertebral bodies.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the cage in accordance withthe embodiment of the present invention.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the guide block 40 is coupled to the frontsurface 103 of the main body 10.

The guide block 40 includes left and right bars 42 and 43 which areformed in the left and right sides thereof and inserted into mountinggrooves 151 formed in the left and right side surfaces 102 of the mainbody 10, respectively, and a guide block coupling pin 61 is passedthrough through-holes 44 which are formed in the left and right bars 42and 43 of the guide block 40 and an insertion hole 120 which isvertically formed through the right side surface 102 from the left sidesurface 102 of the main body 10. Thus, the main body 10 and the guideblock 40 are coupled to each other.

After the main body 10 and the guide block 40 are coupled, the clip 50coupled to the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 is inserted into themain body 10 through an entrance hole 46 of the guide block 40.

Then, the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 coupled to the clip 50 areguided along the upper and lower inclined surfaces 141 and 143 of theinclined part 140 formed in the main body 10, and unfolded to protrudeupward and downward from the main body 10 while moving upward anddownward.

At this time, the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 are coupled to theclip 50 through the clip coupling pin 60.

Hereafter, the respective elements of the cage 1 in accordance with theembodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

FIGS. 5A to 5D are detailed diagram of the main body of the cage inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5A is aplan view, FIG. 5B is a side view, FIG. 5C is a cross-sectional viewtaken along line B-B′ of FIG. 5A, and FIG. 5D is a front view.

As described above, the main body 10 of the cage 1 is formed in ahexahedral shape having the top surface 101, both side surfaces 102, thefront surface 103, the bottom surface 104, and the rear surface 105, thebone fusion hole 110 is formed through the top and bottom surfaces 101and 104, and the channel part 130 provides a space such that the clip 50is inserted from the front surface 103 of the main body 10 and fixed tothe central part of the main body 10.

When the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 coupled to the clip 50inserted through the channel part 130 are unfolded upward and downward,the inclined part 140 formed in the main body 10 guides the movement ofthe upper and lower spikes 20 and 30. The top and bottom of the inclinedpart 140 are opened to unfold the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 tothe outside of the main body 10.

The inclined part 140 has an upper inclined surface 141 formed to guidethe upward movement of the upper spike 20, and a top plane surface 142is formed at an end of the upper inclined surface 141.

Furthermore, the inclined part 140 has a lower inclined surface 143formed to guide the downward movement of the lower spike 30, and abottom plane surface 142 is formed at an end of the lower inclinedsurface 143.

Furthermore, a protruding surface 146 with a predetermined width isformed at the connection between the upper and lower inclined surfaces141 and 142 of the inclined part 140, and an inner wall surface of abase 57 of the clip 50 is locked to the protruding surface 146 so as tostop the insertion of the clip 50 into the channel part 130.

The inclined part 140 has inner wall surfaces 145 formed at the left andright side surfaces so as to be stepped with respect to the top andbottom surfaces 101 and 104 of the main body 10.

The mounting grooves 151 are formed outside the respective inner wallsurfaces 145 such that the left and right bars 42 and 43 of the guideblock 40 are mounted in the mounting grooves 151. The mounting groove151 corresponds to a space formed at the side surface 102 of the mainbody 10 and includes an upper wall 152, a lower wall 153, and a sidewall 154.

The main body 10 of the cage 1 in accordance with the embodiment of thepresent invention is formed of a metal oz metal alloy such as titanium,zirconium, zirconium oxide, hafnium, platinum, rhodium, niobium,stainless steel for surgery, cobalt chrome (CoCr)-steel, or tantalum ora polymer material such as fiber-reinforced plastic or polyether etherketone (PEEK). Furthermore, a metal such as aluminum, medical steel, orgold may be added to the metal alloy.

Desirably, PEEK having excellent mechinability and durability may beused as the material of the main body 10.

The bone fuse hole 110 formed in the body 10 may be filled with bonechips extracted from a patient's ilium, for an operation of placing thecage 1. The bone chips stored in the bone fusion hole 110 may growthrough the cage as the time passes after the operation, thereby fusingthe intervertebral disk of the diseased part to the cervical vertebra orspine.

The insertion hole 120 is formed through the left and right surfaces 102of the main body 10, in order to fasten the guide block coupling pin 60for coupling the guide block 40 to the main body 10.

FIGS. 6A to 6C are detailed diagrams of the upper spike of the cage inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 7A to 7Care detailed diagrams of the lower spike of the cage in accordance withthe embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 8A to 8D are detaileddiagrams of the clip of the cage in accordance with the embodiment ofthe present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6A to 6C, the upper spike 20 coupled to the clip 50 ofthe cage 1 includes an upper blade 21, arms 22 and 23, and fasteningholes 24 and 25. The blade 21 has a pointed end surface formed at an endthereof. The arms 22 and 23 are formed at both sides of the upper blade21 so as to be extended and inclined downward. The fastening holes 24and 25 are formed at ends of the respective arms 22 and 23 such that theclip coupling pin 61 for coupling the clip 50 is inserted into thefastening holes 24 and 25.

The upper spike 20 has such a structure that is inclined upward at anincreasing angle from the fastening holes 24 and 25. Thus, when the cage1 in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention is insertedbetween upper and lower vertebral bodies of a cervical vertebra orspine, the pointed end surface of the upper blade 21 formed at anincreasing angle is put into the upper vertebral body and locked to theupper vertebral body such that the cage 1 may be reliably inserted.

Referring to FIGS. 7A to 7C, the lower spike 30 coupled to the clip 50of the cage 1 includes a lower blade 31, arms 32 and 33, and fasteningholes 34 and 35, like the upper spike 20. The lower blade 31 is formedat an end of the lower spike 30 and has a pointed end surface. The arms32 and 33 are formed at both sides of the lower blade 31 so as to beinclined and extended upward. The fastening holes 34 and 35 are formedat ends of the respective arms 32 and 33 such that a clip coupling pin61 for coupling the clip 50 is inserted into the fastening holes 34 and35.

The lower spike 30 has such a structure that is inclined downward at adecreasing angle from the fastening holes 34 and 35. Thus, when the cage1 in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention is insertedbetween the upper and lower vertebral bodies of the cervical vertebra orspine, the pointed end surface of the lower blade 31 formed at adecreasing angle is put into the lower vertebral body and locked to thelower vertebral body such that the cage 1 may be reliably inserted withthe upper spike 20.

Referring to FIGS. 8a to 8d , the clip 50 for coupling the upper andlower spikes 20 and 30 of the cage 1 includes right and left retainingjaws 51 and 52 and right and left ribs 53 and 54. The right and leftretaining jaws 51 and 52 having a plate shape are formed at the front ofthe base 57 so as to be contacted with an insertion mechanism 200 whichserves to push the clip 50 to the inside of the main body 10, and theright and left ribs 53 and 54 are formed at the top rear of the base 57and extended to be slid and mounted on the top plane surface 142 of theinclined part 140 of the main body 10, when the clip 50 is inserted intothe main body 10.

The clip 50 further includes a lower rib 55 formed at the bottom rearthereof and extended to be slid and mounted on the bottom plane surface144 of the inclined part 140 of the main body 10, when the clip 50 isinserted into the main body 10.

The clip 50 further includes a through-hole 56 formed through the base57 of the clip 50 so as to fasten the clip coupling pin 61 for couplingthe upper and lower spikes 20 and 30.

FIGS. 9 and 10 are diagrams illustrating a state in which the upper andlower spikes of the cage in accordance with the embodiment of thepresent invention are coupled to the clip.

Referring to FIGS. 9A and 9B, the lower spike 30 is positioned insideboth arms 22 and 23 of the upper spike 20, and the fastening holes 24and 25 of the upper spike 20 and the fastening holes 34 and 35 of thelower spike 30 are aligned with each other. In such a state, thefastening holes 24, 25, 34, and 35 of the respective spikes are alignedwith the through-holes 56 formed in the base 57 of the clip 50, and theclip coupling pin 61 is then passed through the fastening holes 24, 25,34, and 35 and the through-holes 56 of the clip 50 so as to couple theupper and lower spikes 20 and 30 to the clip 50.

Thus, the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 coupled to the clip 50 areoperated as illustrated in FIGS. 10A and 10B. More specifically, theupper blade 21 of the upper spike 20 is revolved upward and downwardaround the fastening holes 24 and 25 coupled to the clip 50, and thelower blade 31 of the lower spike 20 is revolved upward and downwardaround the fastening holes 34 and 35.

FIGS. 11A to 11C are detailed diagrams of the guide block of the cage inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11A is aperspective view, FIG. 11B is a plan view, and FIG. 11C is a front view.

Referring to FIGS. 11A to 11C, the guide block 40 in accordance with theembodiment of the present invention is coupled to the main body 10 so asto guide the insertion of the clip 50, and includes a front plate 41,left and right bars 42 and 43, through-holes 44, and an entrance hole46. The front plate 41 closes the front surface 103 of the main body 10.The left and right bars 42 and 43 are formed to extend from ends of bothside surfaces of the front plate 41 to the rear side. The through-holes44 are formed through the left and right bars 42 and 43, respectively,such that the guide block coupling pin 60 is inserted into thethrough-holes 44. The entrance hole 46 is formed in the center of thefront plate 41 so as to provide an opening through which the clip 50 isinserted.

After the left and right bars 42 and 43 of the guide block 40 areinserted into the mounting grooves 151 formed in the left and right sidesurfaces 102 of the main body 10, the guide block coupling pin 60 isinserted into the through-hole 44 of the left bar 42 and fastened to thethrough-hole 44 of the right bar 43 through the insertion hole 120.Thus, the main body 10 and the guide block 40 are coupled to each other.

Furthermore, the guide block 40 has one or more insertion holes 45formed on the front plate 41 thereof such that a coupling screw (notillustrated) fixed to a head 210 of the insertion mechanism 200 to bedescribed below is inserted into the insertion hole 45.

The operation of the case 10 in accordance with the embodiment of thepresent invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 12A to 12D.

FIG. 12A is a perspective view illustrating that the clip is beinginserted, FIG. 12B is a plan view illustrating that the clip is beinginserted, FIG. 12C is a cross-sectional view taken along line H-H ofFIG. 12B, illustrating that the spikes are folded, and FIG. 12D is across-sectional view illustrating that the spikes are unfolded.

The cage 10 in accordance with the embodiment of the present inventionis operated in such a manner that the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30are locked and fixed to upper and lower vertebral bodies of a cervicalvertebral or spine at the part from which an intervertebral disc isremoved.

First, as illustrated in FIGS. 12A and 12b, the main body 10 and theguide block 40 are coupled to each other, and the right and leftretaining jaws 51 and 52 of the clip 50 coupled to the upper and lowerspikes 20 and 30 are pushed by the insertion mechanism 200 to bedescribed below. Then, the clip 50 is inserted into the main body 10through the entrance hole 46 of the guide block 40.

In such a state where the clip 50 is inserted, the upper and lowerspikes 20 and 30 are folded so as not to protrude to the outside of thetop and bottom surfaces 101 and 104 of the main body 10, while the upperand lower blades 21 and 31 of the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 reachentrances to the upper and lower inclined surfaces 142 and 143 of theinclined part 140 inside the main body 10, as illustrated in FIG. 12C.

Then, when the clip 50 is further pushed to the inside of the main body10, the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 coupled to the clip 50 areunfolded upward and downward as illustrated in FIG. 12D. Morespecifically, while guided along the upper and lower inclined surfaces141 and 143 of the inclined part 140 formed in the main body 10, theupper and lower spikes 20 and 30 are moved upward and downward so as toprotrude to the outside of the top and bottom surfaces 101 of the mainbody 10, until the base 57 of the clip 50 is locked to the protrudingsurface 146 formed in the center of the inclined part 140.

At this time, the right and left ribs 53 and 54 of the clip 50 are slidand mounted on the top plane surface 142 of the inclined part 140, andthe lower rib 55 of the clip 50 is slid and mounted on the bottom planesurface 144 of the inclined part 140.

Thus, since the cage 1 in accordance with the embodiment of the presentinvention includes the upper and lower spikes to perform such anunfolding operation, it is possible to omit a complicated operation offixing a plate through a screw in a small intervertebral space in therelated art. Thus, the convenience of medical treatment and thestability of operation may be improved.

FIGS. 13A to 13C illustrate the insertion mechanism for inserting thecage in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention. FIG.13A is a perspective view, FIG. 13B is a plan view, and FIG. 13C is aside view illustrating a state in which the spikes are folded.

The insertion mechanism 200 is used to more stably insert the clip 50coupled to the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 into the main body 10 ofthe cage 1.

Referring to FIGS. 13A to 13C, the insertion mechanism 200 for the cage1 has a head 210 which is coupled to the guide block 40 through acoupling screw (not illustrated) inserted into the insertion hole 45 ofthe front plate 41 of the guide block 40.

The head 210 is formed in a hexahedral shape, and has a left sidecoupled to one side of a first lower support rod 220 and a right sidecoupled to one side of a second lower support rod 230.

Furthermore, a push stick 240 is positioned between the first and secondlower support rods 220 and 230. The push stick 240 has a boss 243 formedat one end thereof so as to push the clip 50 into the main body 10.

The push stick 240 includes a push plate 241, a rod body 242, and acoupling member 244. The push plate 241 is formed at the other end ofthe push stick 240, the rod body 242 is extended from the push plate241, and the coupling member 244 connects the rod body 242 and the boss243. When the push plate 241 is pushed forward, the boss 243 connectedto the coupling member 244 is moved forward through the rod body 242 soas to insert the clip 50 into the main body 10 of the cage 1 asillustrated in FIG. 13D. Then, the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 areunfolded to protrude to the outside of the top and bottom surfaces ofthe main body 10.

For such an operation, the head 210 includes a left head 211 coupled tothe first lower support rod 220 and a right head 212 coupled to thesecond lower support rod 230, and the boss 243 of the push stick 240 isfastened between the left and right heads 211 and 212 so as to moveforward or backward. The other end of the first lower support rod 220and the other end of the second lower support rod 240 are inserted intoa push stick guide 221 in which the rod body 242 of the push stick 240is mounted.

The head 210 of the insertion mechanism 200 further includes an upperhead 213 into which one end of the upper support rod 250 is inserted,and the other end of the upper support rod 250 is inserted into an uppersupport rod guide 251 formed at the top of the push guide 221.Furthermore, a support body 252 is attached to the one end of the uppersupport rod 250.

When the clip 50 is inserted, the upper support rod 250 is contactedwith an upper vertebral body of a cervical vertebra or spine, into whichthe cage 1 is to be placed, thereby improving the stability of theinsertion mechanism 200.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the cage 10 inaccordance with the embodiment of the present invention is placed.Referring to FIG. 14, the cage 1 is positioned between upper and lowervertebral bodies D1 and D2 of a cervical vertebra or spine, and the clip50 is inserted into the main body 10 through the insertion mechanism 200such that the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 protrudes to the outsideof the top and bottom surfaces 101 and 104 of the main body 10. Then,the pointed end surfaces of the upper and lower blades 21 and 31 at theends of the spikes 20 and 30 are locked to the upper and lower vertebralbodies D1 and D2 positioned at the top and bottom of the cage 1 suchthat the cage 1 is fixed and locked between the upper and lowervertebral bodies D1 and D2.

During an actual procedure, the clip 50 is carefully and slowly insertedinto the main body 10 while the push plate 241 formed at the other endof the push stick 240 is hit by a hammer for operation (notillustrated).

Thus, the upper and lower spikes 20 and 30 are positioned between theupper and lower vertebral bodies D1 and D2 so as to be reliably fixed tothe inner rear sides of the upper and lower vertebral bodies D1 and D2.Thus, it is possible to significantly reduce the possibility that thescrew or a part of the plate included in the conventional cages willinterfere with the nerve tissue or blood tissue passing through thecervical vertebra or spine at the part from which the intervertebraldisk was removed and in which the cage is installed.

While the present invention has been described in connection with theexemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawings, they are merelyillustrative and the invention is not limited to these embodiments. Itwill be appreciated by a person having an ordinary skill in the art thatvarious equivalent modifications and variations of the embodiments canbe made without departing from the spirit and scope of the presentinvention. Therefore, the true technical scope of the present inventionshould be defined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

1. A cage that is placed between vertebral bodies of a cervical vertebraor spine, comprising: a main body formed in a hexahedral shape having atop surface, both side surfaces, a front surface, a bottom surface, anda rear surface; a clip operated to be inserted into the body; an upperspike coupled to the clip and unfolded to protrude to the outside of thetop surface of the main body through the insertion of the clip; a lowerspike coupled to the clip and unfolded to protrude to the outside of thebottom surface of the main body through the insertion of the clip; and aguide block coupled to the main body so as to guide the insertion of theclip.
 2. The cage according to claim 1, wherein the main body has a bonefusion hole formed through the top and bottom surfaces and, a channelpart is formed from the front surface to a central part of the main bodyso as to provide a space into which the clip is inserted, an inclinedpart is formed in the main body so as to guide the movement of the upperand lower spikes and, and mounting grooves are formed at both sidesurfaces of the main body such that left and right bars and of the guideblock are mounted on the respective mounting grooves.
 3. The cageaccording to claim 2, wherein the inclined part comprises: an upperinclined surface formed to guide the upward movement of the upper spike;and a lower inclined surface formed to guide the downward movement ofthe lower spike, a top plane surface is formed at an end of the upperinclined surface, and a bottom plane surface is formed at an end of thelower inclined surface.
 4. The cage according to claim 2, wherein theupper spike comprises: an upper blade having an end to form a pointedend surface; arms and formed at both sides of the upper blade andextended to be inclined downward; and fastening holes and formed at endsof the respective arms and such that a clip coupling pin is insertedinto the fastening holes and, and wherein the lower spike comprises: alower blade having an end to form a pointed end surface; arms and formedat both sides of the lower blade and extended to be inclined upward; andfastening holes and formed at ends of the respective arms and such thatthe clip coupling pin is inserted into the fastening holes and.
 5. Thecage according to claim 3, wherein the clip comprises: right and leftretaining jaws and having a plate shape and formed at the front of abase; right and left ribs and formed at the rear top of the base so asto be slid and mounted on the top plane surface of the inclined part; alower rib formed at the rear bottom of the base so as to be slid andmounted on the bottom plane surface of the inclined part; andthrough-holes formed through the base of the clip, wherein the clipcoupling pin is inserted into the through-holes.
 6. The cage accordingto claim 5, wherein the inclined part has a protruding surface formed atconnection between the upper and lower inclined surfaces and, and whenthe clip is inserted into the main body, the protruding surface of theinclined part is locked to the inside of the base so as to stop theinsertion of the clip.
 7. The cage according to claim 2, wherein theguide block comprises: a front plate having a plate shape and closingthe front surface of the main body; left and right bars and extendedfrom both ends of the front plate to the rear side; through-holes formedthrough the left and right bars and, respectively, such that a guideblock coupling pin is inserted into the through-holes; and an insertionhole formed in the center of the front plate so as to provide an openingthrough which the clip is inserted.
 8. The cage according to claim 2,wherein saw-toothed bodies a and a are formed on the top and bottomsurfaces and of the main body.
 9. An insertion mechanism for insertingthe cage of claim 1 into the main body, comprising: a head fastened tothe guide block; a first lower support rod having one side coupled tothe left side of the head; a second lower support rod having one sidecoupled to the right side of the head; and a push stick formed betweenthe first and second lower support rods and and having a boss formed atone end thereof so as to move forward or downward, in order to push theclip to the inside of the main body, wherein the other end of the firstlower support rod and the other end of the second lower support rod areinserted into a push stick guide on which the push stick is mounted, andthe upper support rod is coupled to an upper head formed at the top ofthe head.